The Kraft Heinz Co. and TheNotCompany (NotCo), a food tech start-up, recently created a joint venture to advance plant-based innovations across numerous Kraft Heinz product categories.
The joint venture, called The Kraft Heinz Not Company, will operate under the control of Kraft Heinz but will leverage the strengths of both companies.
Kraft Heinz will use its brand portfolio and scale to develop plant-based versions of co-branded products, while NotCo will use its patented technology and artificial intelligence solutions.
The joint venture will be headquartered in Chicago. Research and development facilities will be in San Francisco. Lucho Lopez-May, NotCo CEO for North America, will become The Kraft Heinz Not Company CEO.
“The joint venture with TheNotCompany is a critical step in the transformation of our product portfolio and a tremendous addition to our brand design-to-value capabilities,” Miguel Patricio, Kraft Heinz CEO, said. “It helps deliver on our vision to offer more clean, green, and delicious products for consumers. We believe the technology that NotCo brings is revolutionizing the creation of delicious plant-based foods with simpler ingredients.”
Consumer interest in plant-based foods is increasing, but there are barriers such as taste, variety, and availability.
NotCo has used technology to develop plant-based replacements for animal products.